Filenews 8 May 2021 - byMarlena Panagi
The tracing process has once again been blocked, as the increased number of cases recorded makes the work of the members of the relevant group almost impossible. Persons registered as contacts are sampled up to 10 days after their declaration from the initial case and there is still a reluctance on the part of citizens to declare the persons with whom they have been in contact, resulting in the subsequent finding that people positive for the virus have never been placed in isolation.
In particular, and according to the latest recorded data from the Tracing Group, only one third (1/3) of people positive for the virus correctly declare their contacts, which means that every day, two thirds of cases do not declare their contacts, so it is not possible to determine whether they are informed of this in order to be restricted.
At the same time, during the last ten days of April, on average, each person reported between 2 and 5 contacts, which is considered to not correspond to reality since among the cases were hundreds of workers who did not interrupt their physical presence in their workplace.
The latest recorded data show that for the month of April Nicosia was the most burdened province, while in the first ten days of the same month this position was occupied by Limassol. As can be seen, a large number of cases are found in banking institutions, government agencies, lyceums, gymnasiums and universities.
With regard to the period between the day on which contacts are reported and sampling, official data shows that there is a delay of five to ten days (with an average of 7 days) from the day on which the initial case was detected.
This, combined with the fact that several of the contacts are not reported, makes the work of the Tracing Group difficult on the one hand and creates new transmission chains on the other, as people exposed to the virus are not put into isolation in time, thus spreading the virus to other people.
This is also evidenced by official data. According to the relevant report for the month of April, 2810 (41% of all contacts for April) persons/contacts who subsequently experienced cases were not isolated at all.
Furthermore, 51% said they did not know where they were infected with the virus, claiming that they "did not come out of the house", which is then contradicted through the tracing process.
For cases resulting from close contacts, the Tracking Group data, record that almost half (49%), reported that they were aware of the initial case and of them, several were not able to say with certainty the last time they had been in contact with the person who had reported them as a contact after 11 days.
Let us quote some recent data from the tracing, which are important for our further actions. Only a third of cases indicate their contacts. This means that every day, two thirds of cases do not indicate their contacts, so we do not know whether these individuals are informed in order to limit themselves, protect their surroundings and take tests. Therefore, the Tracking Unit cannot even have access to relevant data and there is a high probability that a large number of people who have been in close contact, come out positively and transmit to others without even knowing it.
Another important element is that approximately 5 close contacts per person are reported. This number, since we are circulating and have several contacts every day, seems quite small. This means either that some people do not know what close contact means, or for their own reasons do not disclose all of their contacts. At this point we must stress that revealing contacts is more of a moral obligation, as in reality we help these individuals to be informed and careful not to spread any virus around them.
Sampling takes place after five days
In a number of cases, it is found that people who are declared as close contacts break their quarantine and go to sampling points in order to be examined, thus eventually being shown to have the virus and thus endangering those around them. The Ministry of Health recommends patience, informing that sampling may be delayed by more than five days since on the one hand time is given, so that if the person is infected with the virus, the viral load increases and is detected during the examination and on the other hand, the Tracing Team is given time to do its job properly. Relevant instructions are given to the affected citizens, who, however, in hundreds of cases do not comply, thus further burdening the work of the competent officials.
